Apparatus and method for sharing information through presence service in a communication network

ABSTRACT

An apparatus is capable of sharing information through a presence service in a communication network and capable of providing presence information of a Mobile Station (MS). The apparatus extracts at least one of application information and contents indication information from an application in execution. Presence information is generated that includes at least one of the application information and the contents indication information, and transmitting the presence information to a presence server.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S) AND CLAIM OF PRIORITY

The present application is a continuation of prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/657,074, filed on Jan. 13, 2010, which is related to and claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) to a Korean patent application filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Jan. 13, 2009, and assigned Serial No. 10-2009-0002516. The disclosure of both of these documents is hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a presence service. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for sharing information through a presence service in a communication network.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A recent research for the unification of communication technologies has been actively made. An Internet Protocol (IP) Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) is one of the unifications of the communication technologies. IMS is a technology for complexly providing multimedia such as a voice, an audio, a video, large capacity data, etc. through an IP. Based on IMS, services such as a presence service, a Push to talk on Cellular (PoC) service, a Voice over IP (VoIP) service, a video/image sharing service, etc. can be provided.

Among the listed IMS-based services, the presence service is a service designed to provide status information between user Mobile Stations (MSs). Up to now, the presence service is under active development, but it is general that the presence service provides status information input by a user. That is, the user MSs deliver their own presence information to a separate presence server. If there is a request for a presence service from a different MS, the presence server provides presence information of a target MS to the different MS.

As described above, a user can acquire status information on other user MSs through his/her own MS by using the presence service. However, the information acquired through the presence service is limited to information that is input by a called party. Further, the presence service simply provides only status information on a called party, and does not consider providing a seamless service based on the status information on the called party. Thus, there is a need to propose an alternative for acquiring more detailed status information on a called party's MS and more conveniently sharing information using the status information.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To address the above-discussed deficiencies of the prior art, it is a primary aspect of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for providing detailed status information through a presence service in a communication network.

Another aspect of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for sharing information depending on acquired status information through a presence service in a communication network.

A further aspect of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for automatically updating status information to be provided through a presence service in a communication network.

A yet another aspect of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for sharing identified contents through a presence service in a communication network.

The above aspects are achieved by providing an apparatus and method for sharing information through a presence service in a communication network.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for providing presence information of a Mobile Station (MS) in a communication network providing a presence service is provided. The method includes extracting at least one of application information and contents indication information from an application in execution, preparing presence information including at least one of the application information and the contents indication information, and transmitting the presence information to a presence server.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for acquiring presence information of an MS in a communication network providing a presence service is provided. The method includes receiving presence information of a source MS from a presence server, and displaying the presence information including application information and contents indication information.

According to a further aspect of the present invention, an MS apparatus in a communication network providing a presence service is provided. The apparatus includes a controller for extracting at least one of application information and contents indication information from an application in execution, and preparing presence information including at least one of the application information and the contents indication information, and a communication unit for transmitting the presence information to a presence server.

According to a yet another aspect of the present invention, an MS apparatus in a communication network providing a presence service is provided. The apparatus includes a communication unit for receiving presence information of a source MS from a presence server, and a display unit for displaying the presence information including application information and contents indication information.

Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION below, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases used throughout this patent document: the terms “include” and “comprise,” as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without limitation; the term “or,” is inclusive, meaning and/or; the phrases “associated with” and “associated therewith,” as well as derivatives thereof, may mean to include, be included within, interconnect with, contain, be contained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, or the like; and the term “controller” means any device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation, such a device may be implemented in hardware, firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely. Definitions for certain words and phrases are provided throughout this patent document, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that in many, if not most instances, such definitions apply to prior, as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present disclosure and its advantages, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals represent like parts:

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displaying presence information of a Mobile Station (MS) in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a signal dependent on a presence service of an MS in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a construction of an MS in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a procedure of providing presence information of an MS and contents in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a procedure of acquiring presence information of an MS and contents in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIGS. 1 through 5, discussed below, and the various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present disclosure in this patent document are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the disclosure. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged communication network.

A technology for acquiring detailed status information on a called party's Mobile Station (MS) and more conveniently sharing information using the status information through a presence service in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is described below. Here, the MS represents a communication MS accessible to an Internet Protocol (IP) network. For example, the MS means the inclusion of all of a cellular phone, a Personal Communication System (PCS), a Personal Data Assistant (PDA), an International Mobile Telecommunication (IMT)-2000 terminal, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, etc.

A presence service according to the present invention has the following features.

In a presence service according to the present invention, presence information is automatically updated depending on a function that is currently executed in an MS. For example, in case that a function such as video/audio reproduction, Web surfing through a Web browser, picture/motion capturing through a camera, image viewing, a memo, a diary, etc. is executed by a user, presence information indicating the function in execution is generated. Additionally, information indicating contents used by the function in execution can be included as well. For example, the information indicating the contents used by the function in execution can be a video file in case of video reproduction and a Web site address in case of Web surfing. Namely, an MS recognizes an application executed by a user, extracts both a name of a function corresponding to the application and the information indicating the contents used by the function in execution, and sets the extracted information as a value of a ‘note’ field or new field of presence information. At this time, the information indicating the contents used by the application in execution is different depending on a characteristic of the application. In some cases, there can be also presence information representing just only execution or non-execution of the application without the information indicating the contents used by the application in execution. For example, extracted information dependent on each application and an example of presence information are shown as in Table 1 below.

TABLE 1 Application Extracted info. Example of presence info. Web browser visit Web site URL Visiting site ‘URL’ Media player Video file name, audio tag Listening to music ‘song title’ of ‘singer name’ Camera Capturing activation or Capturing motion deactivation Image viewer Image file name Watching picture ‘file name’ Others Application name, data Taking memo Identifying schedule

Accordingly, upon receiving the presence information, an MS displays the presence information, which is generated depending on the extracted information, i.e., the information indicating the contents used by the application in execution, on a screen. For example, a screen displaying presence information of an MS that is in course of reproducing an audio file is illustrated in FIG. 1.

Also, a presence service according to the present invention provides a function of sharing contents used by an application being in execution in a source MS displayed through the presence service. Namely, upon receiving presence information, a watcher MS sends a request for sharing of contents indicated in the presence information, to the source MS. In other words, if contents desired to be shared are selected by a user, the watcher MS determines which contents are selected by a user and which application corresponds, and sends a request for information enabling contents sharing to the source MS. At this time, the information enabling the contents sharing is different depending on a characteristic of an application. For example, the information enabling the contents sharing can be contents themselves or path information for acquiring the contents. Also, a scheme of adding a separate tag to presence information or a scheme of searching a keyword in presence information can be used to acquire application information corresponding to the presence information. In the tag adding scheme, an MS identifies a corresponding application through a tag included in presence information. In the keyword searching scheme, the MS identifies a corresponding application by searching a keyword within presence information. For example, an example of a definition of a keyword dependent on an application is shown as in Table 2 below.

TABLE 2 Presence info. Keyword Application Info. to be requested Visiting site ‘URL’ Site Web browser Current scroll position Listening to music Music Media player Media file, ‘song title’ of ‘singer VOD path of media name’ file Capturing motion Motion Camera Preview data capturing Watching picture ‘file Picture Image Image file, image path name’ viewer Taking memo — others Data native to Identifying schedule application (text, schedule document)

For description convenience, the present invention denotes the ‘information indicating the contents used by the function in execution’ as ‘contents indication information’, and denotes the ‘information enabling the contents sharing’ as ‘contents sharing information’.

FIG. 2 illustrates a flow of a signal dependent on a presence service of an MS in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 illustrates a signal flow when a source MS 210 provides presence information and a watcher MS 220 acquires the presence information of the source MS 210.

Referring to FIG. 2, in the source MS 210, in step 201, information on an application in execution and contents indication information are extracted, and the extracted information are generated as presence information by an automatic presence status generator. For example, the extracted contents indication information is a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of a site if it is in course of Web surfing, and is a media file or streaming address if it is in course of using a media player, and is a preview or picture if it is in course of using a camera or viewing a picture.

In step 203, the presence information generated by the automatic presence status generator is delivered to a presence service module. In step 205, the presence information is transmitted to a presence server 200 by the presence service module. And, in step 207, in response to a request of the watcher MS 220, the presence information stored in the presence server 200 is transmitted to the watcher MS 220.

In the watcher MS 220 receiving the presence information through a presence service module, in step 209, the presence information is delivered to a request data extractor. Also, in step 211, a user's input responsive to a data share request identified through an input unit is delivered to the request data extractor. Then, in step 215, the request data extractor identifies contents indicated in the presence information by analyzing the presence information, and gets ready for execution of an application corresponding to the contents. At the same time, the request data extractor sends a request for contents sharing information in response to the user's input.

In the source MS 210 receiving the request for contents sharing, a share authenticator performs an authentication procedure for permission or rejection of the contents sharing request of the watcher MS 220. Namely, the share authenticator determines whether to share requested contents. At this time, the authentication is performed on the basis of a sharing range set before sharing of presence information, or the authentication is performed depending on circumstances at the time of occurrence of a request for contents sharing information. If the authentication succeeds, in step 217, the share authenticator informs a data storage unit that the authentication is permitted.

Then, in step 219, the data storage unit provides requested contents sharing information to a sharer and, in step 221, the sharer transmits data according to a transmission scheme corresponding to the type of contents. For example, if the source MS 210 is in course of capturing with a camera, a Video Sharing (VS) scheme can be used and, if the source MS 210 is in course of watching a picture, an Image Sharing (IS) scheme can be used and, if data is equal to a TeXT (TXT), a URL, a music file, etc., a file sharing scheme can be used. However, if the contents sharing information is equal to not contents themselves but a contents acquisition path, the share authenticator informs not the data storage unit but the application that the authentication is permitted, and the application provides the contents acquisition path to the sharer.

Then, in the watcher MS 220 receiving the contents sharing information, in step 223, upon acquiring the contents sharing information, a sharer provides the contents sharing information to an application ready for execution or a data storage unit. An example of an operation of the watcher MS 220 dependent on the contents sharing information received is shown as in Table 3 below.

TABLE 3 Presence info. of source MS Application Operation of watcher MS Visiting site ‘URL’ Web browser Visit to the same site Listening to music ‘song Media player Feel the same media title’ of ‘singer name’ Capturing motion Camera Preview Watching picture ‘file Image viewer View the same image name’ Taking memo others View memo by memo pad Identifying schedule Compare called party's schedule with my schedule through scheduler

In the signal flow of FIG. 2, step 221 transmits the contents sharing information directly to the watcher MS 220 from the source MS 210. However, this assumes data transmission based on IMS. Unlike this, step 221 can be performed through a separate server.

A construction and operation of an MS sharing presence information and contents as described above are described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 3 illustrates a construction of an MS in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the MS includes an input unit 302, a display unit 304, a storage unit 306, a communication unit 308, and a controller 310.

The input unit 302 recognizes an input generated by a user, and provides the controller 310 with information corresponding to the input. Namely, the input unit 302 processes a user's input through a keyboard, a keypad, a touch screen, a touchpad, a mouse, a special function button, etc.

The display unit 304 displays status information generated during an operation of the MS and numerals, characters, images, etc. resulting from an application program. Namely, the display unit 304 displays, as a visual picture, video data provided from the controller 310. For instance, the display unit 304 can be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), an Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED), etc. Particularly, the display unit 304 displays presence information of a source MS. At this time, the presence information includes application execution information and contents indication information.

The storage unit 306 stores data such as a program code for an activation of the MS, an application, contents, etc. For example, upon application execution, the storage unit 306 provides stored contents under control of the controller 310, and stores contents provided from the controller 310.

The communication unit 308 provides an interface for accessing a communication network. If the MS is equal to a wireless node such as a cellular phone, the communication unit 308 includes a Radio Frequency (RF) module and an antenna. Also, if the MS is equal to a computer connecting to a wired Internet network, the communication unit 308 includes a physical connection port and a modem. Particularly, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the communication unit 308 transmits presence information provided from the controller 310 to a presence server, and provides the controller 310 with presence information received from the presence server. Also, the communication unit 308 transmits packets requesting contents sharing information to a source MS, and receives the contents sharing information provided from the source MS.

The controller 310 controls a general function of the MS. That is, the controller 310 processes a procedure corresponding to a user's input recognized by the input unit 302, provides video data to the display unit 304, and controls operations of the storage unit 306 and the communication unit 308. Particularly, the controller 310 generates presence information including application execution information and contents indication information and controls a function for contents sharing according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In detail, if the MS operates as a source, the controller 310 extracts information on an application in execution and contents indication information, and generates presence information including the application information and the contents indication information. For example, the presence information including the application information and the contents indication information is shown as in Table 1 above. And, the controller 310 transmits the presence information to a presence server through the communication unit 308. Also, if there is a request for contents sharing information from a watcher MS, the controller 310 performs an authentication procedure for the watcher MS. If the authentication succeeds, the controller 310 transmits the contents sharing information to the watcher MS or a separate server for data share through the communication unit 308. For example, the contents sharing information is shown as in Table 2 above. At this time, the authentication is performed depending on a preset basis or depending on circumstances at the time of requesting contents sharing information. For instance, if the watcher MS is included in a preset list of data share permission MSs, the controller 310 transmits the contents sharing information to the watcher MS.

If the MS operates as a watcher, the controller 310 analyzes presence information of a source MS. That is, the controller 310 identifies which application is executed and which contents are used in the source MS through the presence information of the source MS received from a presence server. At this time, the MS analyzes the presence information through a specific tag included in the presence information, or analyzes the presence information by searching a keyword within the presence information. After that, if a contents share request command by a user is generated, the controller 310 sends a request for contents sharing information to the source MS through the communication unit 308. At this time, whether the contents share request command is generated is determined depending on user's input information provided from the input unit 302. And, the controller 310 identifies if requested contents sharing information is received. At this time, the contents sharing information is received from the source MS directly or via a separate server for data share. If the requested contents sharing information is received, the controller 310 executes an application corresponding to the contents sharing information, or stores the contents sharing information in the storage unit 306.

FIG. 4 illustrates a procedure of providing presence information of an MS and contents in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, in step 401, the MS identifies if application execution is detected. In other words, the MS identifies an execution or non-execution of an application by a user's manipulation.

If the execution of the application is detected, the MS, in step 403, extracts application information and contents indication information. Namely, the MS identifies which application is executed and which contents are used. For instance, the contents indication information can be a URL of a visit site, a tag of a reproduced music file, a file name of a displayed image, etc.

After extracting the application information and contents indication information, in step 405, the MS generates presence information including the application execution information and contents indication information, and transmits the generated presence information to a presence server. Namely, the MS generates the presence information including an indication indicating an application in execution and contents used. For instance, the presence information is generated as in Table 1 above.

After that, the MS, in step 407, identifies if a share request for contents included in the presence information occurs. In other words, the MS identifies if a request for contents sharing information on the contents occurs. If the share request does not occur, the MS returns to step 401.

On the other hand, if the share request occurs, the MS, in step 409, performs an authentication procedure for a watcher MS having sent the share request for the contents. In other words, the MS determines whether to share the contents with the watcher MS. At this time, the authentication is performed depending on a preset basis or depending on circumstances at the time of a share request. For example, if the watcher MS is included in a preset list of data share permission MSs, the MS determines to provide the contents to the watcher MS.

After performing the authentication procedure, the MS, in step 411, identifies if authentication succeeds. In other words, the MS identifies if it is determined to share the contents with the watcher MS. If the authentication fails, the MS returns to step 401.

On the other hand, if the authentication succeeds, the MS, in step 413, transmits contents sharing information to the watcher MS. At this time, the MS transmits the contents sharing information to the watcher MS directly or via a separate server for data share. Here, the contents sharing information is contents themselves or path information for acquiring the contents and is shown, for example, as in Table 2 above.

FIG. 5 illustrates a procedure of acquiring presence information of an MS and contents in a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, in step 501, the MS receives presence information of a source MS from a presence server, and displays the presence information. At this time, the presence information includes application information and contents indication information.

Then, the MS, in step 503, analyzes the presence information of the source MS. Namely, the MS identifies which application is executed and which contents are used in the source MS through the presence information of the source MS received from the presence server. At this time, the MS analyzes the presence information through a specific tag included in the presence information, or analyzes the presence information by searching a keyword within the presence information.

After analyzing the presence information, the MS, in step 505, identifies if a user's contents share request command is generated. In other words, the MS identifies if a user's manipulation of commanding a share request for contents identified through the presence information analysis is generated.

If the contents share request command is generated, the MS, in step 507 and sends a request for contents sharing to the source MS. In other words, the MS sends a request for contents sharing information on the contents. Here, the contents sharing information is contents themselves or path information for acquiring the contents and is shown, for example, as in Table 2 above.

After that, the MS, in step 509, identifies if requested contents sharing information is received. Namely, the MS identifies if the source MS permits a share request. At this time, the contents sharing information is received from the source MS directly or via a separate server for data share.

If the contents sharing information is received, the MS, in step 511, executes an application corresponding to the contents sharing information or stores the contents sharing information. The executed application is different depending on the contents and is shown, for example, as in Table 3 above.

An exemplary embodiment of the present invention can mutually share a more detailed status of a called party by providing not only status information previously input by a user but also automatically updated operation information of an MS through a presence service in a communication network providing the presence service. Further, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention can provide an advanced service enabling emotion share between users by enabling sharing of contents indicated through presence information.

While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A first electronic device, comprising: a communication unit; and a controller configured to: control the communication unit to transmit, to a server, a request for information regarding a first user of a second electronic device; receive, via the communication unit, the information regarding the first user of the second electronic device, the information comprising application information identifying a first application executed in the second electronic device and user activity information describing a first activity with respect to the first application; control to output, for display based on the received information, the application information and the user activity information describing the first activity with respect to the first application executed in the second electronic device; receive, via the communication unit, additional information comprising user activity information describing a second activity with respect to the first application; and control to output, for display based on the received additional information, the user activity information describing the second activity, wherein user activity information describes an activity which the first user performed with respect to the first application executed in the second electronic device.
 2. The first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to: receive, via the communication unit, additional application information identifying a second application executed in a third electronic device and user activity information describing a third activity which a second user performed with respect to the second application; and control to output, for display based on the received additional application information and the received user activity information, the additional application information and the user activity information describing the third activity with respect to the second application.
 3. The first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the application information includes a title of the executed first application.
 4. The first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the user activity information includes information describing an activity with respect to a web browser being executed on the second electronic device.
 5. The first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the user activity information includes information describing an activity associated with a media player executed on the second electronic device.
 6. The first electronic device of claim 5, wherein the user activity information indicates a video content is playing.
 7. The first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the user activity information includes a music title of a music content and indicates the music content is playing.
 8. The first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to transmit, to the server, additional application information identifying a third application executed in the first electronic device and user activity information describing a fourth activity which a third user performed with respect to the third application.
 9. The first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to output, to an external display, the application information, and the user activity information describing the first activity with respect to the first application.
 10. A first device for providing information of a user, the device comprising: a communication unit configured to receive, from a second electronic device, application information identifying a first application executed in the second electronic device and user activity information describing a first activity with respect to the first application; a memory configured to store the received application information and the received user activity information; and a controller configured to: receive, from a first electronic device via the communication unit, a request for information regarding a first user of the second electronic device, transmit, to the first electronic device via the communication unit, the information comprising the stored application information and the stored user activity information, and transmit, to the first electronic device via the communication unit, additional information comprising user activity information describing a second activity with respect to the first application executed in the second electronic device, wherein user activity information describes an activity which the first user performed with respect to the first application executed in the second electronic device.
 11. The first device of claim 10, wherein: the communication unit is configured to receive, from a second device, additional application information identifying a second application executed in the second electronic device and user activity information describing a third activity which a second user performed with respect to the second application; the memory is configured to store the received additional application information and the received user activity information; and the controller is configured to: receive, from the first electronic device, the request for the information from the second electronic device, and transmit, to the first electronic device via the communication unit, the information comprising the stored additional application information and the stored user activity information.
 12. The first device of claim 10, wherein the user activity information includes information describing an activity with respect to a web browser being executed on the second electronic device.
 13. The first device of claim 10, wherein the user activity information includes information describing an activity associated with a media player executed on the second electronic device.
 14. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program, which, when executed by a first electronic device, performs a method of providing information of a user, the method comprising: transmitting, by the first electronic device to a server, a request for information regarding a first user of a second electronic device; receiving the information comprising application information identifying a first application executed in the second electronic device and user activity information describing a first activity with respect to the first application; outputting, for display based on the received information, the application information and the user activity information describing the first activity with respect to the first application; receiving additional information comprising user activity information describing a second activity with respect to the first application; and outputting, for display based on the received additional information, the user activity information describing the second activity with respect to the first application, wherein user activity information describes an activity which the first user performed with respect to the first application executed in the second electronic device.
 15. The non-transitory computer-readable recording medium of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises: receiving additional application information identifying a second application executed in a third electronic device and user activity information describing a third activity which a second user performed with respect to the second application; and outputting, for display based on the received additional information, the additional application information, and the user activity information describing the third activity with respect to the second application.
 16. The non-transitory computer-readable recording medium of claim 14, wherein the user activity information includes information describing an activity associated with a media player executed on the second electronic device. 